About

Jen is a thirty-year-old Canadian book blogger and bibliophile currently residing in the wilds of suburbia. Aside from a penchant for older men, particularly those with the surnames Firth, Elba and Norton, Jen is also passionately interested in running, Mad Men, and Marilyn Monroe. In addition to being a voracious reader and self-proclaimed television addict, Jen is also an aspiring children and youth services librarian who would like to pursue a MLIS and better help readers find the perfect book for them.

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Happy Monday, friends! It’s the beginning of a new week brimming with hope and possibility and I can think of no better way to celebrate than by talking a little about a book I’m very much looking forward to. Today, I have the immense pleasure of hosting the exclusive cover reveal for my friend and debut author, Darcy Miller’s upcoming 2017 middle grade release, Roll! Coming to a bookstore and library near you May 23rd, 2017 from HarperCollins, Roll tells the story of Ren, who befriends the new girl next door and is thrust into the weird and wonderful world of competitive pigeon rolling. I’ve revealed a lot of covers over the course of Pop! Goes The Reader’s three year history, and I have to say that Roll‘s might be one of my favourites yet. Roll‘s cover was designed by Katie Klim and illustrated by Becca Stadtlander. The delicate wash and texture of the watercolour and the beautiful pastoral scene are truly lovely and I can’t wait to display this book on my shelves. Please read on to learn more about this charming middle grade debut, including an exclusive cover reveal, a personal note from the author about the story’s origins and an opportunity to win an advance reader copy of Roll!

My dad has kept pigeons for as long as I can remember, despite the fact that he’s deathly allergic to them. Literally. Back in the day, a doctor once told him if he continued to keep pigeons, he would die. Not keen on being a widow, my mother made him promise before their wedding that he’d get rid of his birds. He didn’t. Instead, he bought a really big mask. Then he cut a hole in the side of his pigeon coop, attached a long tube to his really big mask, and stuck the tube through the hole. Problem solved!

Forty-five years later, my parents are still married and my dad still has his pigeons. He also has a smaller mask that makes him look less like Darth Vader, so that’s nice. I guess what I’m trying to say, albeit in a very rambling sort of way, is that pigeon people are weird. They’re a close-knit, incredibly generous, fiercely competitive community. They’re more than happy to travel hundreds of miles to watch their friends’ birds fly, to invite perfect strangers into their homes for breakfast, and to spend hours on the phone, giving (sometimes unasked for) advice to new breeders.

I was pretty excited to write a book that delves into the strange and awesome world of competitive pigeon rolling, but I’d like to point out, for the record, that Roll is about more than just pigeons. It’s a story about changing friendships, and aboveground pool parties, and vintage Bananaman comic books, and feeling like you don’t belong anywhere, sometimes.

It’s also a story about pigeons.

Lots and lots of pigeons.

About Darcy Miller

Darcy Miller lives in Prairie du Sac, WI, with her two small children and librarian husband. Their cat, Jeffreys, deserves his own sentence. Their kitten, Stompy, does not. Darcy is the daughter of a world-class Birmingham Roller Pigeons flyer. Roll is her first novel.

When eleven-year-old Ren meets a new neighbor girl who is focused on breaking into the strange world of competitive pigeon rolling, he discovers that there’s more to life than vintage comic books and video game marathons.

As an extra, exciting bonus, Darcy has been kind enough to offer one lucky reader the chance to win a advance reader copy of Roll! This contest is open internationally and the prize will be distributed once advance reader copies become available. Please fill out the Rafflecopter form below to enter!